Happily Ever After
by KristieConspiracy
Summary: Luna was brought face to face with a tall young man, all pale skin and hair, eyes nearly silver - and very familiar...he offered a wry smile. "Draco Malfoy." Fairytale AU (version of 'Snow White and Rose Red'), happy ending, fluff, Draco/Luna. Secret Santa gift for TrisanaChandler13. Merry Christmas!


**Gift for:** TrisanaChandler13. She asked for Druna, happy ending and fairy tale AU for a secret Santa thing on HPFC. I hope you like it, Tris, and merry Christmas!

**Challenges: **Screaming Faeries' _Secret Santa!_ on HPFC, Lamia of the Dark's _One of Every Letter_ on HPFC, Philaria's _85 Shades of AU_ on HPFC.

**Characters: **Luna Lovegood, Ginny Weasley, Draco Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange, Xenophilius Lovegood.

**Prompts: T**ris: _Druna / Fluff / Fairytale!AUs / happy endings / AUs /Non-depressing fics_.  
><strong>H<strong>.  
><strong>26. C<strong>reature / **27. A**nimal / **35. F**airytale.

**Word count: **2500

**A/N: **This is basically a retelling of _Snow White and Rose Red_, an old German fairytale. Don't believe me? Don't recognise the name? Google is your friend.

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><p><strong>H<strong>appily **E**ver** A**fter

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><p>Once there was an old man who lived in a house that looked like a chess rook. Called Xenophilius Lovegood, he had wiry white hair, far too long to be entirely natural, and wide silvery eyes. Some called him mad, though he had the potential for genius, and he had been widowed some years ago. Now he lived with his daughter and her friend, who worried that the other girl was too quiet for her own good.<p>

The daughter was named Luna, for her eyes were like twin moons, and her hair was longer even than her fathers, a dirty shade of blond. She was kind and clever and shy, and incredibly gentle. It was her who would feed the beasts from the forest near her home, skeletal winged horses and unicorns and cat-like creatures too clever to trust easily. The creatures loved her, though, and she lured many of them to her side.

The friend had red hair and a spitfire nature, wickedly clever and energetic and fun. Her name was Ginny, and she was the only daughter of the neighbours, who had six sons and could barely afford to feed the brood. So it was that Ginny spent so much time at the Lovegood house: her friend was too shy and trusting to be left alone, and besides, she loved the bizarre delicacies the odd duo served. Her favourite thing to do was explore the forests bordering the Lovegoods' land, and all the better if she could convince Luna to stop sketching and join her. "Running is good for your soul," Ginny would say, and Luna tended to agree. She disliked conflict.

The little family - for related or not, Ginny was a second daughter to Xenophilius - liked to gather around the fireplace on the first floor after nightfall. They would lock the door carefully with their enchantments and bolts; Luna would sketch and Ginny would nurse a large mug of tea brewed to help her sleep. The two young women would listen to Xenophilius tell some far-fetched story that Ginny never trusted and Luna always believed.

One night in mid-winter, when their Christmas decorations were coated with ice and the fireplace was full of ashes from frequent use, the story was interrupted by someone knocking at their door, asking to enter. Luna was on her feet already, but Xenophilius smiled and sent Ginny to open the door. "It must be a traveller seeking shelter from the frost and cold," he stated reasonably, and the neighbours' daughter nodded and went to greet them, pulling the door open with a laugh and a smile. The laughter quickly became a shriek as she threw herself backwards.

"Bear!"

Luna, already half hidden in the shadows as she searched for a sharpener for her pencil, went still. She stared at the doorway, where the huge white bear looming over her friend. "Oh," she breathed, incapable of anything else. "Oh."

Ginny fell over backwards, clambering towards the fire where the old man still sat. He showed no fear, looking the bear over as it remained where it stood on its' hind legs in the doorway. He cleared his throat as if to speak, but another mans' voice beat him to it.

"Please, calm down! Don't fear me. I'm not here to - oh. I mean no one any harm. It's rather cold out here, and I'm half-frozen. This is the only shelter for miles - will you be so cruel as to deny me a little warmth?"

Xenophilius realised that the bear had spoken, and raised a single curious eyebrow. _A talking bear? how odd._ "Poor unfortunate thing," he smiled slightly, then nodded and stood. "Girls, calm down. There's no need for hysterics. Ginevra, the bear will do us no harm. Luna, my daughter, surely you can see that he is no different to any of the forest creatures you care for every day?"

Luna agreed that yes, her father had a point, and carefully moved back to the hearth as the bear settled on the rug. She had no wish for him to suffer, and so she brushed the snow from his shoulders, then took the throw rug from the couch and draped it over him. "I hope you're a little warmer, sir Bear."

"Thank you," he grumbled, and he was so sleepy and polite that even Ginny felt her heart melt a little, watching as Luna began to stroke the great bears' coat. The red haired girl moved closer, and began to poke the Bear, jerking her hand out in a brisk, daring fashion. She did not trust him, but she did want her fix of fun, and poking a talking bear as it rested on the rug - why not?

He did not protest, even smiling a little, as much as a Bear could. For, you see, the poking did not harm him; his coat was thick and, now that it was dry, protected him well. Besides, for all the irritation the poking might cause, Luna's soft petting had a calming effect on him, and soon he was asleep.

Morning came and the Bear left, but he returned that night, and the next, and the next. This became ritualt all through winter as he sought out their home for warmth at night, and, though he wouldn't admit it, for the comfort of company. He had grown rather fond of Luna and Ginny, and even of Xenophilius and his peculiar tales. The family were so used to his company that they began waiting for his arrival before they locked the door at night, and were sad to see him depart.

Luna, though, would see him when she ventured into the fringes of the forest alone, finding him in the snow. Together they would talk for hours, of things she never questioned him knowing - secrets of society and history no Bear had a reason to know - and of things that showed her passion - of art and animals and helping.

Spring came eventually, though, as it must, and the Bear addressed Luna directly. "Thank you, Luna, for the company and the kindness. I never expected to find this out here, on the edge of everything. I'm afraid I must go now, though, and I won't return until summer has passed, if at all."

Luna gaped at him, then turned away, dreading this. _No, please. I'll miss you so much._"Where are you going, then, Bear?""

"I have some valuables hidden in the Forest that I must protect from a wicked woman. In winter, the ground becomes hard and impossible to dig, and she cannot reach what she wishes to find. It has warmed now, and will be easy for her to find my hiding place. I'd hate to lose all that now, after everything."

"Everything?"

"Never mind, Luna. I just need to protect some things from a thief. I will probably return in winter, if that eases your mind."

She stared at him, then smiled and hugged the Bear, pretending that she was not grieved by his departure. "Good luck, dear Bear."

"Thank you." And he left in such a hurry that part of his coat caught on a tree and tore free. Luna lifted it from the branch, certain she could see a flash of silver behind the fur - but when she could not spot it again, she decided that she must have imagined it.

Not long after, Xenophilius sent both Ginny and Luna into the forest to get firewood. Ginny was better able to handle the axe, and Luna knew the location of several felled trees that would be easy to chop. Luna led the way to a large old oak that had fallen long ago, where the girls found a hunched creature tugging at the log. Luna moved closer, finding a woman with wild black hair tugging at it and shrieking in pain. "Curse you! God damn - _curse that damn_ -!" she howled, and Luna flinched away from the racket.

"Are you hurt?"

The woman whipped around, fixing her heavily lidded gaze on Luna and pointing dramatically. "You! Girl! Get me free of this infernal damned log!"

Luna flinched again, and blinked at the angry woman. "But why on earth are you out here alone?"

"None of your concern! Now get me _free_, damn you!"

Ginny grabbed Luna's arm and pulled her back, grinning, troublemaking in mind. Luna had been miserable since the Bear had left, and Ginny had no doubt that his absence was the cause. She also believed it ought to be up to her, as Luna's best friend, to cheer her up. "I'm not going to help someone who lies and keeps secrets," she smirked, "and neither is my friend."

"What! You petulant brats - why are you so cruel? Fine! I was going to cut some wood to take for cooking at my camp, but I slipped and my hair caught in the thing, and now I'm trapped. Will you help me or not?"

Luna shot Ginny a look that dared the other girl to stop her, then shook her off and moved over to try to help the woman. After a moment, Ginny joined her, and though the girls pulled separately and then together, the woman didn't budge. She really was trapped.

"Your dad will know what to do," Ginny finally said, gasping from the effort her and Luna had exerted. The woman glared and snapped,

"Your _daddy_? I don't need more filthy idiots, I need a solution now!"

"No need to be so impatient," Luna scolded, caught between frustration and amusement at her harmless yelling. "I will help you." And she took the axe and chopped right through the womans hair, cutting her free.

As soon as she felt herself pull free, the dark haired woman snatched up the bag she had really been at the log to find, full of golden coins. "Idiotic brats, to slice at _me_ with an axe. Curse you!" And she left.

The next day, Xenophilius sent the young women into the forest to catch some fish. "Plimpies for dinner," he said with a smile. Luna knew the easiest path to the river, and Ginny was stronger, so as to reel in the bigger fish. To their surprise, a hunched figure stood in the river, struggling against the current and their line. Dark hair gave her away; they recognised the angry woman from the day before. "Now what are you doing here, of all places?" Ginny asked.

"You brats! Does no one else live in this forest?" she shrieked. "Well, what are you waiting for? Help me!"

The young women exchanged a look: Ginny wanted to leave her to suffer as she deserved, but Luna could never willingly let a creature - even a cruel one - suffer. So the girls moved closer, and together they examined the problem. The woman had managed to tangle her messy locks with her fishing line this time, trapped by a fish too strong for her to pull in. So it was that the girls sighed and, as the line would not hold still, Luna had to cut the thick hair to free the raging woman, using their bait knife.

The woman, of course, was not pleased, and screamed at them for ruining her lovely hair. "How dare you damage my hair so! My lovely, perfect hair!"

Ginny thought it an improvement, and told her so. The woman stormed off in a rage, but not before removing the bag she'd been after, filled to the brim with silver and bronze coins, from the rushes beside the river.

On the next day, the third of their adventure, Luna's father sent them to town to buy equipment for sewing, so that Luna could repair their damaged clothes, hers and Ginnys' and the neighbours. The path to the village was downhill, but cut through a section of the forest with rocks scattered around. This was where the thestrals' lived, as Luna well knew, though she still skidded to a stop in horror as she took in the scene before them.

It was the woman with the dark hair and the bad attitude all over again, ranting and raving. A thestral had fast hold of her hair, obviously intent on inflicting serious damage, much to Luna's dismay. Ginny would have laughed, had her friend not strode closer instantly, raising her voice. "_Don't_," she snapped, and tugged the woman away, who then shrieked like a banshee.

"My _hair_!" she shrilled, and took the bag of precious gems from its' hiding place in the shadows of the rock before disappearing into the darkness. The girls, not expecting a thanks, shared a look of disdain, and continued on to town.

On their way home that evening, they startled the woman stones in the same clearing, who had emptied her newest collection onto a smooth table-like stone, all the better to examine their beauty. With the evening light glinting off the stones, they sparkled attractively, almost hypnotically. "Why are you gaping like fools?" the woman snapped, her pale face turning red with anger.

She continued to curse the two and swear, cutting off with an unattractive squawk as a huge white Bear approached from the edge of the clearing. The woman jumped to her feet, turning more pale than before, and begged for her life: "Dear Mister Bear, please, spare me. I have all this treasure, and it is yours now, look. And besides, I would be a _dreadful_ meal - take these two cruel girls instead, eat _them_ instead, as they deserve by now, surely!"

The Bear ignored the pleading, and swiped the woman with his paw, drawing blood.

The two friends, meanwhile, scrambled into the forest, away from the threat. Luna was slower, as ever, and Ginny was ahead by several metres - "Come _on_, Luna, hurry up, I don't want to get _eaten_!" - when the more familiar voice called to them:

"Luna and Ginevra, really, don't be afraid. Wait a moment, I will come with you."

Recognising the voice as that of the Bear, Luna stopped immediately, turning to wait for him. She had missed him so much, _surely_ she had imagined the voice? But Ginny had heard it too and also stopped, eying the place where Luna waited, ready to defend her friend.

But the Bear did not come near them, instead, Luna was met by a tall young man, all pale skin and hair, eyes nearly silver - and very familiar. He wore a silver dress shirt and black dress pants, and he offered a wry smile. "Draco Malfoy," he offered his name without pause. "I'm sorry for the deception, but my aunt transfigured me into a beast when she stole my inheritance after my father fell ill. I had wanted her dead, but, Luna, you showed me there are other ways - thankfully, her blood broke the curse." He had the sense to look ashamed, and a little sorrowful. "Sorry."

Luna blinked once, then twice, then threw herself at him, hugging him tight. "Does this mean you can stay?"

He laughed in relief. "Sure, why not?"


End file.
